Native Custom Baggers has been doing fat front wheels for over a decade. Here's a link to the kit for your bike. i'd advise getting in touch with them directly as they can also steer you in the right direction for a wheel as well.
I've installed a number of the Native Custom Bagger Fat Tire kits. I'm also getting ready to do one on my personal RGS. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me. Also, if you search on here, I posted a link to a video of me installing the kit on a bike, on the sales floor.
I have the Native Customs kit on my 17 RG, over 25K on the front tire, Im sure that Ill get 40k out of it easily. BTW I absolutely love it, will definitely do it again.
I was worried about running a rear tire, in the front and backwards, because of vehicle inspections. According to inspection regulations here, you can’t have a tire running the wrong direction, if there are rotation arrows. But with the fat front tire kit, you have to run the tire backwards so that the water shedding properties of the tires as you look front to back, is still the same orientation as stock tires.
So I got my “front” tire today and was pleasantly surprised.
Ordering my kit and wheel as soon as Paul from Native is back in town.
I knew it wouldn't be much longer before someone did this for the fat front tire kit. I talk to a tire "expert" a year or so ago about why you should run a rear tire backwards when mounting it up front and he stated that it's not only for the water shed properties but also because of the way that tires are constructed. A rear tire is designed to take the force of acceleration and the front tire is designed to take the force of heavy braking. Those forces are opposite so when you put the rear tire up front you should flip it around to now take the force of braking.
Paul from Native called me yesterday and I placed the order for my kit. Won't ship for about a week because he's waiting for more lower legs to come back from powder coating. I got the kit, in gloss black with pointed fork cans and a Talon wheel to closely match the OEM Special wheels. Once that gets here, and my fender gets here from CPV, I'll have everything and be ready for the install.
I’ve had my front fat tire for over a year now and absolutely love it. Handles like a dream. I don’t really worry about tire snakes or ruts in the road. I have about 9k on the tire now and it stil looks good as new.
I like this trend , real tires. maybe the huge bicycle tires on the front will be history. I wonder how it will effect steering with a hack and trike front end with 6 degree rake.
I was thinking along the same lines, but I really didn’t want to lower the suspension or go to front & rear air on my RGU. So I planned to do a fairing lowering kit to try to get that lowered stance. Once I got it put together I decided I didn’t need to lower the fairing. In fact, I thought it might look weird on an RGU with the fairing potentially being lower than the tour pak.
So, I’m really happy with the look on standard height RGU. If I was doing it on a Special, I’m might feel differently, I don’t know.
I will tell you Paul at Native is a great help, whether you get a kit from him or not. I have installed the fat front tire and really like it. It is stable and not squirrelly at all with tar snakes etc. I have lowered the front 1" and haven't had any problems with the ride...just love it.
I'm looking to do this too. I've talking to the guys at Wanna_Ryd about it. I am curious as well on how they handle with the wide tire up front. Thanks! Its always good to see others out there trying new things
I just bought a 2109 Special and the dealer had installed the Native Pit Bull kit and lowered the fairing 2" and the suspension 1.5".
I have about 700 miles on it in like five days and cannot express how much I love the wheel kit. Also how much I hate the suspension.
I have a 2011 FLTRU with the 13" suspension and a 19" front wheel. I am 100% glad I got the fat front tire. I am now trying to get enough help and advice as to what to do with the suspension while keeping it lowered somewhat. I want two very different roadies for different use and looks.
I would like to just change the rear enough to make it decent, I never had any illusion that the ride would be good or better because I new the trade offs. But the Burly 10.5 on the rear are not good and borderline dangerous if you ride aggressive. I am 6' 1" and 230 lbs. I don't need the bike lowered but want the look at the front end.
Any suggestions would be appreciated but I wanted to add my 2 cents that the fat front tire kit rides and handles better than expected by a large margin!
If I can't get a reasonable fix I may put better suspension on, raise the faring back up and add the fang spoiler. Hoping to avoid those costs.
Lots of suspension out there. Lots go with online, but can be pricey for what you're after. Others go with SuperShox (which I plan on next season) and some on here have gone with Fox in the same price ranges as SuperShox.
Which shocks on the rear, what size? How much did you lower the front? Thanks, I sent you a pm with these ?'s Howard suggested I reach out to you before I decide what to do. Do you have a pic of the front of your bike you could post?
Loving the Native Fatty's, my 18 RGU stock height with stock internals and SE heavy fork oil with the Night Dragon GT, I had the Dunlop 207 I think originally but only got 12k out of it before the sides were worn out, the center was fine hahahaha. so far loving the Night dragon's they handle better in my opinion. My Wife's 18 Freewheeler Trike with the Dunlop 207 running backwards, figured with the dual tread compound it should last dam near as log as the rear tires haha. both kits are Native, just had to modify the fender, cowbells and trike forks since they are longer to make everything line up and work. She love's it and it feels planted in the front end now where before it felt light in the corners.
I have read several of the threads on here and I love the look of that fat front tire. Before reading these threads I had actual talked to a couple of the guys at the local HD about changing the front out to the 160 from the FatBoy. I was even asking them about changing the rear out to a larger rear tire to see if they had seen it done. Since I only have about 1300 miles on my front tire, I am going to try and wait until I need a new front and do this fat tire change. In looking at the tire sizes, from the stock 130 to this 180, if the math is correct, there is just over 5/16th of an inch difference between the 2 sizes when looking at the radius change. From my old 4x4 days, that is not much of change in ground clearance or overall diameter. My plan is to keep the stock fork length, and actually had thought about going to the FOX rear shocks down the road for a tad more rear suspension. Thanks for this thread, it has given me even more ideas on what I can do to my road glide.
I think I watched your video on YouTube. I recently bought a 19 RGS and plan to do the Native kit. I have a few questions:
1. Have you done the FLTRX fairing lowering kit (DD Cycle, Yaffe Bagger Nation or MC Baggers) on any of your 15 & up builds? Do you have a preferred fairing lowering kit?
2. I know the 18 180 is about the same height as the stock 19" tire, do you recommend lowered suspension as well and if so who (I don't want airride)? I'm thinking 1 - 2" max and I like to ride the twistys to the tune of 5-7K per year (that's all the time work allows me .
3. Do you know anyone that can match my Wicked Red Denim for the fender, I was thinking about "The Factory Match"
1. Yes I have used a fairing drop in conjunction with a fat front tire kit. I used the bracket that Native Custom sells since I was already getting the fat tire kit from them
2. You don't have to lower your bike at all when doing this kit. I do it purely for the looks and so that you don't see the fork slider inside the notched fork can. I have used Progressive drop in springs as well as Ohlins cartridges. Just depends on your riding style and what you want.
3. When I did my Wicked Red bike, I sent the fender from the fat tire kit to CPV in WI. They paint for the MoCo so they have all the colors. They did an awesome job and it was worth the wait. I say that because they paint in batches, meaning they will wait until they have enough items of a certain color before painting. They sat on my fender for 5 weeks before they painted another batch of Wicked Red.
You can go with a Dunlop rear tire running backwards, an Avon (very soft and will still be a rear tire running backwards) or you can go with a Pirelli Night Dragon. It is actually branded to be a front or a rear tire and lasts a long time. I have almost 5K on mine and it still looks brand new. I recently put a set of Pirellis on a fat tire road glide that I built for a customer and he has been raving about them ever since.
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